BY CATHERINE WANG AND ARBEL EINI CNN Hero: Pushpa Basnet

Videos Pushpa Basnet goes to pick up two kids from a jail Pushpa’s documentary “Waiting For Mamu” teaser basnet-nepal-prisons/index.html basnet-nepal-prisons/index.html CNN Hero Page Pushpa’s website Let Her Go

Extra Information Nepal is very poor, so many parents are doing drugs, trafficking, etc. to earn money. When they are caught, and the children go to prison with them, that’s where the problem is. By 2030, the population of 23 million will double, yet the industries of agriculture and forestry, which supports 80% of the people, can’t keep up, which will cause more poverty. This global problem occurs in Nepal Because so many kids are going to jail in Nepal, the kids don’t get the education they need. Many five year olds go to jail for 13 years. When they come out, they don’t know anything, except for what they experienced in the prisons.

Global Problem Pushpa Basnet lives in Nepal, one of the most poorest countries in the world. In Nepal, when a parent is arrested, and there isn’t a local guardian available, they can choose to take their children with them to the prison, or let them live on the streets. Pushpa is taking children out of the prisons, and giving them the childhood and education they deserve

Pushpa’s Inspiration When Pushpa was 21, she was studying social work at her college. She was told to visit a women’s prison, and when she arrived, she was shocked at the terribe conditions. She was also surprised to see children living behind the prison bars. One baby girl grabbed her shawl, and gave Pushpa a big smile. "I felt she was calling me," Basnet said. "I went back home and told my parents about it. They told me it was a normal thing and that in a couple of days I'd forget it. But I couldn't forget.“

Quote "It's not fair for (these) children to live in the prison because they haven't done anything wrong. My mission is to make sure no child grows up behind prison walls.“ –Pushpa Basnet We chose this quote because it shows her commitment to her “global problem,” she is determined not to let any children who have not done anything wrong grow up in the prison.

Action Plan When she was 21, Pushpa decided that she would start a day care to bring the kids she was taking out of the prisons to live in She called it the Early Childhood Development Center She got her friends to donate some money, and rented a building in Kathmandu for her program

Beneficiaries Some people who benefit from Basnet’s organization are:  All the imprisoned mothers who want a brighter future for their children  All the children who did nothing wrong, and deserve a happy childhood and education

Accomplishments Just two months after Basnet visited the prison for her college, she brought five kids out of the prison  She picked them up at the prison during the weekdays every morning, and then took them to her center, and brought them back in the afternoon. Since 2005, she has helped over 100 children with imprisoned parents.

Reason For Selection We chose Pushpa Basnet because we thought that what Basnet is doing was incredibly sweet, and that she was doing something very important, by giving imprisoned kids the life they deserve. We were also very surprised at her dedication to her project when we found out that she was only 21 at the time when she started “taking in” imprisoned kids

Inspiration Pushpa Basnet made us feel empathetic about the children in Nepal, and the situation that they were in

Global Citizenship Practitioner Pushpa is an outstanding “global citizenship practitioner” because she helped the children in Nepal out of the situation that they were in. Pushpa really cares about others and took action against a problem. This is why Pushpa Basnet is an outstanding “global citizenship practitioner”.

Images